Form for concrete columns



July 11, 196 E. s. REID ETAL FORM FOR CONCRETE COLUMNS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 21, 1958 INVENTORS EDWARD s. l?/D, Alma/R .6. 0A W5, y WILLIAM 5.61M)

HERBERT M. BYRD uru eadmoa ATTORME ms July 11, 1961 E. s REID ETAL 2,991,533

FORM FOR CONCRETE COLUMNS Filed A ril 21, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS 0WARD S- Rfi/D, ARTHUR E. DAV/S,

BY WILLIAM E. GRAY a HERBERT M. BYRD 75 a wdmoa ATTORNEYS July 11, 1961 E. s. REID ETAL 2,991,533

FORM FOR CONCRETE COLUMNS Filed April 21, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS ,EDWARD S- liE/D; ARTHUR E. DAV/8: WILLIAM E. GRAY 6 104 HERBERT M. BYRD zaeqj 7 M 5 mp4 United States V PatentO 2,991,533 FORM FOR CONCRETE COLUMNS Edward S. Reid, Hartsville, S.C., Arthur E. Davis, Des

Moines, Iowa, William E. Gray, Akron, Ind., and Herbert M. Byrd, Mexico City, Mexico, assignors to Sonoco Products Company, a corporation of South Carolina Filed Apr. 21, 1958, Ser. No. 729,609 3 Claims. (Cl. 25-118) 13, 1956, which issued as Patent No. 2,873,503 on February 17, 1959, entitled Concrete Column Form for Square Columns, there is disclosed and claimed a form arrangement for square concrete columns in which forming panels are disposed within an outer tubular member and the outer tubular member is employed to support the forming panels so as to obviate the necessity for any external .bracing.

, The present invention provides a further improved concrete column form structure utilizing an outer tubular member to support a generally rectangular inner form incorporating integral corner portions so that the corners of a column formed therein are shaped to particularly good advantage while the forming structure, and the manner in which it is erected, are maintained extremely simple.

The forming arrangement of the present invention is characterized by a one or two piece forming insert that is arranged within the outer tubular member and is folded or molded into a rectangular or square hollow form before insertion within the outer member. This arrangement allows the inner column form to be easily assembled and inserted'together with suitable filler means within the outer tubular member, the inner form being secured able commercial example is the product sold under the trade name Weytex and manufactured by the Weyerhaeuser Corporation. This hardboard material is a pressed fiber structure and when heated it becomes pliable and can be bent or molded to any desired shape, and in which shape it will set rigidly upon cooling.

Another embodiment of my invention which has been used satisfactorily incorporates an inner form of plywood having V-shaped slots routed therein while disposed as a flat panel to define foldable corners at which the desired square form shape can be developed and at which the corner slots will close upon folding.

The present invention is described in further detail below in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a form erected in accordance with the present invention and illustrating the steps involved in stripping the form from a cured concrete column;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of a preferred embodiment of the form shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a modification of the form shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of a still further modification of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating the flat developed Patented July 11, 1961 2 form of the forming member employed in the embodiment of FIG. 4.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, and more particularly at first to FIGS. 1 and 2, the concrete form of the present invention is preferably formed by spirally winding a plurality of paper strips to form a laminated or multi ply circular, tubular member 10 of a predetermined height and thickness, the diameter and height determined by the size of the concrete column desired. A square inner form 12 is arranged within tubular member 10 and concrete is poured within inner form 12. After the concrete has hardened, the tubular body 10 is stripped away by longitudinal slitting or other means and the generally square inner form 12 remains in contact with the cured or hardened concrete. Inner form 12 is then stripped thereby leaving a finished concrete column 13,.

The inner form or insert 12 shown in FIG. 2' is ar ranged within tubular member '10 and is formed from a pressed fiber material such as the previously mentioned Weytex that can be deformed or molded to a predetermined shape when heated to a predetermined temperature and will harden when cooled. The inner form or in- .sert 12 is formed from two separate panels 14 thatextend for the entire length of tubular member 10 and contact-each other at their sides to provide a generally rectangular area within the tubular member 10. Each panel 14 is of a U-shape and has smooth rounded corner portions that contact tubular member 10 at the circumferen-tial interior surface thereof. Panels 14 are pro.- vided with block members 18 at each lateral edge thereof which extend for the entire length of panels 14 and which are secured thereto by suitable securing means such as nails or screws. Block members 18 allow the edges of separate panels 14 to be held together. 'Filler means 20 are arranged between the insert 12 and the tubular member 10 at two sides formed by the generally rectangular insert 12 and are secured to the inner wall of tubular member 10, filler means 20 being positioned between block members 18 and the inner wall of tubular member 10 at the other two sides of the insert 12. The corners formed by the molding of the hardboard material are smooth rounded surfaces and thus the finished concrete column 13 has smooth corners.

In forming the column form shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the separate insert panels 14 are first secured to block members 18 that are in turn secured to each other and then the filler means 20 are attached to block members 18 at two sides of insert 12 and to panels 14 at the other two sides of insert 12. Tubular member 10 is next placed around the entire combination and, afer being arranged therearound, the tubular member 10 is secured to [filler means 20 and the column form as thus assembled is available for use immediately.

In FIG. 3 a modified embodiment is illustrated which comprises a similar outer tubular member 50 having only a one piece hardboard panel forming the inner form 52 with block members 54 arranged on each lateral edge thereof. Filler means 56 are interposed between the inner form 52 and the inner surface of the tubular body 50 at each of the four sides of the generally rectangular area defined by inner form 52. Block members 54 are secured to each other by suitable means with filler means 56 being interposed between the interior surface of the tubular member 50 and the outer surface of block members 54.

A further embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings, and comprises an outer tubular member and an inner form made from a single panel 102, preferably formed of plywood, and having a plurality of V-shaped slots 104 cut out or routed therein on one surface thereof. Panel 102 7 r 3 is folded at slots 104 to a generally rectangular shape with each corner 106 except one being formed between two spaced slots 104, the remaining corner 106 being formed by abutting relation of the two lateral edges ofpanel 102. Upon the folding of panel 102 the edges of the V-shaped slots 104 are brought together in abutting relation and the corner portions of panel 102 present the equivalent of a continuous forming surface thereat. The lateral edges of the panel 102 are beveled oppositely in order to form a tight fit when arranged in abutting relation within the tubular member 100. Filler means 108 are also arranged between each of the four sides of the inner form 102 and the inner surface of tubular member 100. The embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is adaptable for any type of rigid panel or insert, and materials other than plywood can be used satisfactorily.

The concrete column form in all of the above mentioned embodiments is readily disposed in place at the site of the finished concrete column. After the concrete poured therein has cured or set, the outer tubular meme ber is stripped by slitting longitudinally and pulling the slit edges away from the inner form. The filler means are next removed along with the inner form. Although the outer tubular member cannot be reused, the remainder of the concrete column form can normally be reused several times by merely placing the inner form and filler means within a new tubular member. This is an important advantage as the cost of the concrete column form is substantially decreased by the reuse of the inner form members and only the relatively inexpensive outer tubular member need be replaced.

The integral corner portions of the forming means provided by the present invention is a further distinct advantage in that the time and labor required for assembly of the concrete column form is thereby considerably simplified and a smooth, rounded corner is formed on the finished concrete column so that no special finishing of the column corners is required.

This invention has been described above for purposes of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description or otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A concrete form for molding a generally rectangular column comprising, in combination, an outer tubular paper-member circular in cross section, a generally rectangular inner form of moldable sheet material positioned within said tubular member and having straight side panels and corner portions interconnecting said side panels, each of said corner portions and the portions of said side panels adjacent thereto formed from a single piece of sheet material to provide a smooth continuous inner surface on said inner form, said corner portions being arranged in engagement with the inner wall of said tubular member, and bracing members positioned between said inner form side panels and the outer tubular member for transmitting internal pressure from the inner form to the outer tubular member.

2. A concrete form for molding a generally rectangular column comprising, in combination, an outer tubular paper member circular in cross section, a generally rectangular inner form positioned within said outer tubular member and having straight side panels and smoothly rounded corner portions interconnecting said side panels to form a smooth continuous inner surface on said inner form, said inner form comprising a pair of identical U-shaped members each formed from a single piece of moldablesheet material and positioned within said outer tubular member with their corresponding longitudinally extending side edges in abutting engagement to form said generally rectangular inner form, said corner portions on each of said U-shaped members being arranged in engagement with the inner wall of said outer tubular member, and bracing members positioned between said inner form side panels and the outer tubular member for transmitting internal pressure from the inner form to the outer tubular member,

3. A concrete form for molding a generally rectangular column comprising, in combination, an outer tubular paper member circular in cross section, a generally rectangular inner form positioned within said tubular member and having straight side panels and smoothly rounded corner portions interconnecting said side panels to form a smooth continuous inner surface on said inner form, said inner form comprising a single piece of moldable sheet material having a pair of longitudinally extending side edges arranged in abutting engagement, said corner portions being arranged in engagement with the inner wall of said tubular member, and bracing members positioned between said inner form side panels and the outer tubular member for transmitting internal pressure from the inner form to the outer tubular member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,295,310 Hartman Feb. 25, 1919 1,734,773 Murray Nov. 5, 1929 1,756,542 Dowd Apr. 29, 1930 2,050,258 Bemis Aug. 11, 1936 2,677,165 Copenhaver et a1 May 4, 1954 2,873,503 Davis Feb. 17, 1959 

